Introducing a new documentary film programme for and about teenagers, presented in partnership with four European film festivals. Article by Yuliia Kovalenko, Director of the Programming Department at Docudays UA.
This year marks the debut of a special initiative — Docs4Teens. It is a selection of short films created in partnership with the Krakow Film Festival, Festival dei Popoli, FIPADOC, and Docudays UA — together, we form the international network also called Docs4Teens. Our festival joined this alliance in 2021, and we had planned to implement this programme expansion in 2022. However, due to Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, we were only able to return to this wonderful collaboration now.
The teenage audience is probably one of the most demanding. However, they are also the most open to new experiences. That’s why in Docs4Teens, we primarily combine our efforts to find creative documentary films that can interest young audiences aged 12 and up in each of the countries participating in the network of festivals. In addition to Ukraine, these countries include Poland, Italy, Portugal, and France. Throughout the year, our team and our foreign colleagues watch films, exchange ideas, engage in discussions — and at the end of this process, we collectively curate a selection of films, which then are showcased in our programmes.
Still from the film Last Song From Kabul
To some extent, this is how we create a shared European space for documentary films for and about teenagers. I hope that the films included in this year's Docs4Teens selection will serve as bridges between Ukrainian teenagers and their peers from other European countries. Over the past years, I’ve had the chance to attend screenings of films from this section at festivals organized by our foreign colleagues — and each time, they became a place for genuine dialogue between young audiences and cinema.
Still from the film Fatmé
The short films in this year’s Docs4Teens selection are united primarily by the desire of their characters for freedom — the freedom to pursue their passions, to be themselves, and to self-actualize. From a girl who, despite all social restrictions and stereotypes, wants to become the strongest (Fatmé by Diala Al Hindaoui), to students of musical school in Kabul who remain devoted to their love of music despite the upheavals in the country (Last Song From Kabul by Kevin Macdonald and Ruhi Hamid). From Icelandic teenagers traveling through the city to rescue birds that got lost (Puffling by Jessica Bishopp), to a group of people who gather once a year in a remote forest outside the city to immerse themselves in art (Carnaval by Justine Martin). However, an important condition for this freedom is empathy.
Still from the film Puffling
Header photo: Still from the film Carnaval
The 22nd Docudays UA is held with the financial support of the European Union, the Embassy of Sweden in Ukraine, International Renaissance Foundation. The opinions, conclusions, or recommendations do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union, the governments, or organisations of these countries. Responsibility for the content of the publication lies exclusively with the authors and editors of the publication.
